Rights of Colonists
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Colonists in America considered themselves to be English citizens. They expected the same rights that citizens enjoyed in England, the most important of which was the right to have a voice in their government.
Magna Carta The English people had won the right to participate in their government only after a long struggle, the key victory to this struggle being the signing of Magna Carta, or “Great Charter,” by King John in 1215, which established the idea that the power of the monarch, or ruler, was limited. Not even the king was above the law. The next major victory was the founding of Parliament in 1265. Parliament was made up of representatives from across England. Over time, it became a lawmaking body with the power to approve laws and taxes proposed by the king or queen. In 1685, James, the Duke of York, became King James II and did not want to share power with an elected assembly in New York nor an elected Parliament in England. When he tried to rule without Parliament, James was forced off his throne. This change in power, which took place without bloodshed, is known as the Glorious Revolution. The English Bill of Rights Following the Glorious Revolution, Parliament offered the crown to Prince William of Orange and his wife, Mary in 1689. In exchange, they had to agree to an act, or law, known as the English Bill of Rights. This act said that the power to make laws and impose taxes belonged to the people's elected representatives in Parliament and to no one else. It also contained a bill, or list, of rights that belonged to the people. Among these were the right to petition the king (request him to change something) and to have a trial by jury. English colonists saw the Glorious Revolution as a victory not only for Parliament, but also for their colonial assemblies. They wanted to select those individuals who made their laws as well as those who set their taxes. After all, this was a cherished right of all English citizens. Crime and Punishment Each colonial assembly passed its own laws defining crimes and punishments. However, most crimes were treated similarly in all the colonies. Certain very serious crimes—including murder, treason (acts of disloyalty toward the government), and piracy (robbery at sea)—could be punished by death. Puritans in New England added other crimes to this list based on their understanding of God's law in the Bible. In New England, colonists could be put to death for “denying the true God” or for striking or cursing their parents. Crimes such as theft, forgery, and highway robbery also carried harsh punishments in every colony. For these crimes, people might be jailed, whipped, or branded with hot irons. Lesser crimes, such as drunkenness and breaking the Sabbath (working or traveling on Sunday), were punished with fines, short jail terms, or public humiliation. A colonist caught breaking the Sabbath, for example, might be locked in the town stocks, which were a heavy wooden frame with holes for a person's neck, wrists, and ankles. Lawbreakers were locked for hours in this device in a public place where others could ridicule them. No group had firmer ideas about right and wrong than New England's Puritans. The Puritans required everyone to attend church on Sundays and forbade anyone to work or play on that day. Some people believe that the Puritans wrote their Sunday laws in books with blue paper bindings. These rules came to be known as blue laws. Some blue laws still persist to this day. The Puritans were constantly on the watch for signs of Satan (believed to be an evil angel who rebelled against God) since he was thought to work through witches. In 1692, fear of witchcraft overtook residents of Salem, Massachusetts, when several girls were seen acting strangely in church. The girls accused their neighbors of being witches and putting spells on them. Nineteen accused witches were put to death during the Salem witch trials before calm was restored and the townspeople realized that the girls' accusations were untrue. |